Cook the Book: Carne con Chile

The first recipe of the week adapted from Robb Walsh's The Tex-Mex Cookbook is for carne con chile. Yes, you read that rightnot "chile con carne." Jorge Cortez, (La Margarita in San Antonio), the gentleman who gave Walsh the recipe, said the large chunks of meat called for the flip-flop in the name.

Yield:4 cups

Ingredients

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 pound 2-by-1/4-inch sirloin strips

1/2 cup chopped onions

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon flour

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

2 ancho chile pods

Tortilla chips

Directions

1.

Heat the oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven, and brown the meat well, 5 to 10 minutes, until any water evaporates.

2.

Add the onion; cook until wilted, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, flour, cumin, bay leaves, black pepper, and salt. Stir constantly for about 2 minutes or until flour is browned.

3.

Add 2 cups water along with the anchos. Cover; simmer 20 minutes. Continue cooking, stirring, and adding more water until the anchos dissolve completely and meat is tender.

4.

Remove any large pieces of ancho skin. Serve in a bowl with tortilla chipsor as a sauce for enchiladas or tamales.